School board members absences should be addressed

Some Lafayette Parish School Board members have been absent from meetings at a rate that should raise concern among those who charged them with the responsibility for the welfare of the school system.

In 2012, the full nine-member school board was present for only 16 of its 53 meetings, which included 23 regular twice-monthly meetings, specially called meetings, hearings and workshops.

That is particularly unsettling, given the fact that public schools are currently facing major challenges, such as a budget crisis, lost programs, teachers leaving their profession and new state-created programs that are being challenged in court.

Although School Board President Shelton Cobb and member Kermit Bouillion, both retired, had no absences, other members' absences ranged from as few as three to as many as 23.

School board policy on absenteeism is ill-defined. School board members are allowed up to five absences without penalty, but it is unclear during what time period those absences are allowed. Five per year? Five per term?

We find it odd, to say the least, that the time requirement is not more clearly defined. That makes enforcement difficult, if not impossible.

Anyone missing five meetings, including regular board meetings, special or committee meetings, is required to present a written excuse to the board president. The board will then determine whether the excuse meets the requirements for exceptions to the policy. Those include attending a state or national convention, work or hospitalization.

Each violation requires that the board member relinquish $100 of his or her $800 monthly salary.

Although those whose absences total in the double digits missed only between zero and three regular meetings, they each racked up high totals for special meetings, expulsion hearings and workshops.

But those missed meetings could be important ones.

Specially called meetings usually address urgent matters that cannot wait until the regular meeting.

Expulsion hearings can have a profound effect on a student's life or on the well-being of his or her classmates.

Workshops are not specifically addressed by the policy, but that doesn't mean they are not important. They keep school board members informed on trends, programs or changes in the field in which they are setting policy. School board members who miss a workshop have to be brought up to speed during regular meetings, taking up extra time.

Some of the school board members with the worst track records cite work as the reason for missing meetings. And that is acceptable under the law.

But the fact that it is legally acceptable doesn't mean they miss any less information or opportunities to vote on important matters.

At the same time, for many public officials, their elected office must be a part-time job. They have to earn a living, after all, and the compensation for most public offices is not enough to live on.

But school board members are working on solutions to the problem. School Board Vice President Hunter Beasley told The Daily Advertiser Friday that he and Cobb are looking into the option of accommodating work schedules for future meetings and will try to give as much advance notice as possible. That is good news for school board members who have to work daytime hours, as well as for the constituents they represent. Those who choose to serve the public through elected office are asked to give their talent and expertise and, one more thing - their time.

Anyone considering running for office should first learn what demands the job will make on their time, then determine whether they can live up to the commitment.But in the meantime, we urge school board members to make every effort enforce the policy on attendance and perhaps more important, to find solutions to this problem. It's important for all the school board members to give the students of the parish and their parents the kind of representation they need and deserve.

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School board members absences should be addressed

Some Lafayette Parish School Board members have been absent from meetings at a rate that should raise concern among those who charged them with the responsibility for the welfare of the school system.